Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE FIESTAS DE AZUERO
Famous throughout Panama, the traditional festivals of Azuero were created
around customs from early Spanish settlers. This is a side of Panama that few for-
eigners are ever given the opportunity to see. While you may lose a day from aseco
hangover, taking part in the wilder side of the peninsula is hard to forget. Some of
the best-known festivals:
Festival de San Sebastián
January 20 in Ocú
Carnaval
The four days before Ash Wednesday in Chitré, Parita, Las Tablas and
Villa de los Santos
Semana Santa
March/April in Pesé and Villa de los Santos
Feria de Azuero
Late April/early May in Villa de Los Santos
Fiesta de Corpus Christi
Forty days after Easter in Villa de los Santos
Fiesta de San Juan Bautista
June 24 in Chitré
Patronales de San Pablo & San Pedro
June 29 in Pedasí and La Arena
Fiestas Patronales de Santa Librada
July 20 in Las Tablas
Fiesta de la Pollera
July 22 in Las Tablas
Festival del Manito Ocueño, Fiesta Popular, Matrimonio Campesino, El Duelo
del Tamarindo & El Penitente de la Otra Vida
August (dates vary) in Ocú
Feria de la Mejorana, Festival de la Virgen de las Mercedes
September 23 to 27
in Guararé
Founding of the District of Chitré
October 19 in Chitré
La Grita de la Villa
November 10 in Villa de los Santos
Refugio de Vida Silvestre Cenegón del Mangle
This 775-hectare refuge near Parita protects a mangrove forest at the mouth of the Río
Santa María, an important wildlife area and nesting ground for wading birds. The most
commonly sighted species here are great egrets, cattle egrets and tri-colored herons - in
fact, many of the herons that now inhabit the Palacio de las Garzas (Palace of the Her-
ons), the official residence of the Panamanian president, came from this reserve.
The refuge is accessed by a 500m-loop trail that follows a boardwalk through the man-
grove forest. Along the way, keep your eyes fixed on the waters below as the abundance
of wading birds also attracts hungry caimans and crocodiles. The herons are here year-
